Melvyn R. Leventhal
Attorney At Law

488 Madison Avenue
22nd Floor
New York, New York 10022
Phone: 212 935 0800
Email: mel@mleventhal.com
Education:
New York University School of Law, J.D. and New York University, B.A.
 
Bar Admissions:
New York, District of Columbia and Mississippi.
 
1984 - 2000:
Founded and served as Managing Partner of a boutique litigation law firm – three partners and 7 associates – in New York City.
 
1994- Present:
Concentration in Art Law.
  • Primarily representation of art galleries, dealers, artists and collectors located in New York, London and Geneva relating to their business matters and to artwork transactions generally valued between $250,000 and $50 million: 
  • Negotiating and drafting contracts for the sale or purchase of artworks on behalf of art dealers and collectors.
  • Arranging for appraisals, negotiating terms and drafting contracts on behalf of dealers and collectors for the consignment of their artworks to major auction houses.  For example, negotiated the terms and conditions of contracts governing the consignment of $150 million of art to  Christie’s and Sotheby’s auctions.
 
Litigation relating to artworks.
For example:
  • A successful litigation against Sotheby’s and its consignor brought on behalf of a client-collector to prevent the sale of and to recover an artwork that had been stolen from the client.
  • A successful litigation on behalf of a collector who had purchased an artwork that had been secretly restored and then sold to him as in pristine condition.
  • The successful defense of dealers and collectors against claims that artworks they sold were not authentic or that good title had not been conveyed.
  • The successful defense of a dealer against a claim that he was not the authorized agent of a collector and therefore not authorized to sell the collector’s $5 million painting.    
Overview of
Litigation Practice:
Twice briefed, argued and won cases in The Supreme Court of the United States.
  • Countless successful litigations in federal and state trial and appellate courts in New York, other states and D.C.
  • Tried to verdict approximately 15 cases and won multimillion dollar judgments; litigated approximately 50 additional cases to settlement.
  • Deputy First Assistant Attorney General of New York and Chief of Litigation Bureau supervising teams of attorneys litigating hundreds of cases in state and federal courts.
  • Staff Attorney in Mississippi and New York, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. [President Obama has described LDF as “simply the best civil rights law firm in American History.”] 
 
References:
Dealers and collectors in New York, California, London and Geneva.